Scripture Focus: Exodus 12:15–20; Leviticus 23:6–8; 1 Corinthians 5:6–8; Romans 6:4–11; John 6:35
The Feast of Unleavened Bread begins on April 13, 2025, immediately following Passover, and continues for seven days. During this appointed time, the people of Israel were commanded to remove all leaven from their homes and eat only unleavened bread. This feast did not merely commemorate haste in Egypt—it proclaimed the sanctification that follows deliverance.
What Leaven Represents
Leaven in Scripture often symbolizes sin, corruption, and false teaching. Paul wrote, “Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump of dough? Clean out the old leaven so that you may be a new lump, just as you are in fact unleavened” (1 Corinthians 5:6–7). The call was not simply to remove yeast from bread, but to rid our lives of hypocrisy, wickedness, and doctrinal compromise.
Unleavened bread, in contrast, points to sincerity and truth (v. 8). It is the pure, unpolluted nourishment of the Word and of Christ Himself, who declared, “I am the bread of life” (John 6:35).
The Burial of Christ and the Removal of Sin
The Feast of Unleavened Bread also prophetically coincides with the time Jesus’ body lay in the tomb. Having become sin for us (2 Corinthians 5:21), He was buried—and with Him, our old man was crucified (Romans 6:6). “Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death… so we too might walk in newness of life” (Romans 6:4).
Christ’s death and burial are not just facts to be affirmed; they are realities into which the believer is baptized. Just as Israel left Egypt in haste, leaving behind the leaven of bondage, so we are to leave behind the leaven of our former lives.
Living as Unleavened People
Paul did not tell the Corinthians to become unleavened—he told them they already were: “you are in fact unleavened.” This is a positional truth, grounded in Christ. Yet he also commanded, “Clean out the old leaven.” This is our response in obedience.
Our new identity in Christ demands a new walk: holy, distinct, and sincere. The Feast of Unleavened Bread is a call to examine our hearts, to purge out the hidden things of darkness, and to walk as children of light.
Devotional Reflection: Sanctified by the Word and Spirit
Read Together: Exodus 12:15–20; 1 Corinthians 5:6–8; Romans 6:4–11
Discuss:
- Why did God command the removal of all leaven?
- How does leaven illustrate the dangers of sin or false teaching in our lives?
- What does it mean that we are already “unleavened” in Christ?
- How can we actively “clean out the old leaven” day by day?
Reflect: Spend time identifying areas where sin or compromise may have crept in unnoticed. Invite the Holy Spirit to search and purify. Remember that our sanctification is both a gift and a responsibility.
Pray: Father, You have delivered us not only from judgment but into a new and holy life. Cleanse us from hidden faults, and teach us to walk in sincerity and truth. Thank You for burying our old selves with Christ. Help us now to live as a new lump, pleasing in Your sight. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Let us walk as unleavened, for He who died was buried—and we with Him—so that we might truly live.
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